Bag supporting means for bag closing and sealing machines



June 3, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES Filed Dec. 1, 1950 6 Sheets-Sheet l Bnventor flzzvig W;

Gttornegs June 3, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH 2,599,393

BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES Filed Dec; 1, 1950 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 Zinnentor (Ittomega June 3, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH 2,599,393-

BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES Filed Dec. 1, 1950 s Sheets-Sheet 5 ZSnnentor attorneys June 3, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH 2,599,393

BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES Filed Dec. 1, 1950 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 3nventor ,Fd/v/d' Qttomega June 3,, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH 2,599,393

BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES Filed D80. 1, 1950 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 l'mnentor (Ittornegm fla rald 7 1562M June 3, 1952 H. v. KINDSETH 2,599,393

BAG SUPPORTING MEANS FOR BAG CLOSING AND SEALING MACHINES 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Dec. 1, 1950 3 nventor %0% fwd/6% Gttornegs Patented June 3, 1952 BAG SUPPORTING -MEANS FOR BAG CLOS- AND SEALING MACHINES Harold V. Kinds eth, Minneapolis, ,Minn., assignor ,to BemfsflBro. .Bag 00., Minneapolis, Minn, a corporation .ofjMissouri Anplication necember 1, 1950, Serial No. 198.663

.11 claims. (01. 53-57) My 'present invention relates generally to new and usefulimprovements in bag closing machines and more specifically is in the nature of improvements in e ts-in of th tructures disclo ed in t e :UnitedLetters Patent Nos. 1,868,636 and 1,989 ,471 ante to D niel Bomber.

n important o ct of my in e t on is the Provision of mean rec vin an hold n r ee filled to a pred ermin d l v an ma nt i in sa d bas i correct relat on hip t has c i andseali s mec anism wher by th bass ill be closed and sealed an ffi ient manner an erh arane thereof-Will b un form an n ea ine the ey Another o ject of my :invehti is t provis on of novel means :for causin t e in the bass t assume a predetermined leveled .oendit o wher Ibyto iacizlitate .efficient closing and sealing there- Still another obi-ectoftmv invent n is the provision of a has closin and sealing machine hav Lin arotary member provided with a plurality of compartments forreceivins the be to :be closed in a manner to prevent the bags from rub.- ibing .on the compartment walls, and of novel means for imparting relative movements tort-he bags. and the compartment walls whereby t properlysupport the bags and square the :upper .end portions. thereof prior to :the operation of folding andsealing the bags.

Another object of nay-invention is :the provision of bag "holding: compartment means which are readily adjustable to vaccommodate bags of various sizes.

.Asti'll further object of my invention-is the provision of mechanism asfiseti forth, which is relatively simple toconstructwhich ishighlyzeflicient -iii-operation, and which is .ruggedi-nconstruction and durable. in use. 7

Generally stated, .the invention consists of the novel devices, combinations of devices, and ar- 'rangement-of parts hereinafterdescribed andidefined in'the claims.

I-n.theaccomnanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate-like parts Fig. 5 is a fragmentary detail partly in side elevation and partly in section, as seen from the line 55 of Fig. 3 on a reduced scale;

61s a fragmentary detail partly in side-elevation and partly in section, as seen from the line rtef Fig. 3 and one reduced scale;

Fig. -'7-is a fragmentary detail of a'compartment wall-moving mechanism of my invention on a greatly enlarged scale, some parts being broken away and some .parts shown in section;

n 8 is a detail in elevation as seen from the ;line.88 of Fig-'7; and

Fig. 9 isanenlarged'fragmentary section taken onthe line9-,9 of Fig. 3. v

In :the preferred embodiment of my invention illustrated, a supporting frame is indicated in its entirety by the numeral I andcarriesthereon suitable conveyor mechanism including a conveyor belt 12 for successively feeding filled bags 3 to .bag closing and sealing mechanism. The conveyor belt .2 is adapted to feed the bags v.3 on .to a feed table 4 fromwhence they are moved by meansof a pusher element 5 into bag-holding compart- ,ments in a-rotor 6 having a shaft 1 which is suitably journalled in the frame I. While the bags 3 are held in the rotor 6 the upper ends thereof are automatically pasted by .a suitable pastedispausing-and applying mechanism, notshown, and closed by mechanically operated fingers 8' driven .by suitable mechanism, not shown but contained withinahead :9 support y t e fram 1| and y additional closing and sealing elements 10 and ell during rotation of the rotoro. The closed 'and e led sbags .3 a e deposited upon a tably .mou-ntedconvevor b lt 1 2 w ich vers-said bags ,awayufrom the rotor to a point of delivery remote from the machine.

'Means for driving the various components above described comprise an electri91moto,r l3 and suitable transmissionmechanism including a dri ve belt [4, reduction gearing, notshown but contained Within a housing l5, and suitable drive connections therebetween andisaid components- The discharge. conveyor :belt 1:2, for instance, is driven from a rotary drive shaft I6 .by means :of endless linkwchains or belts 1'1 and ;l 8 running over suitable driving sprocket'wheels mounted on the shaft S-and other shafts l9 and 20'1that are suitably -journall'ed in the-frame l theshaftZ 0 carrying a conveyor drum or pulley .21 which drives the conveyor belt 12'. The bag holding, rotor .15 provided with gear teeth 22. which engage the teeth of a drive )pinion .23 mounted on thedrive shaft l6 by which said rotor is driven. ,Means for-imparting said movements to the pusher .element .5 includes gears 2-4, 24, and 25, the latter of which ismounted faston a shaft 26 journalled inathe frame 1 and has mounted thereon aneccentric drive elementZl which imparts oscillatory movements to a lever 28 having one .end pivotally mounted in the frame I, as indicated at 29. The opposite end of the lever 28 is pivotally secured to the pusher element 5, as indicated at 30. The conveying mechanisms 2 and I2, the mechanism for moving the bags 3 to the rotor 6, the bag closing fingers 8 and mechanism therefor, the pasting mechanism, not shown, the bag closing and sealing elements l and H and parts associated therewith, and the driving mechanism for the above mentioned devices are all described in detail in the Belcher patents above identified. Hence, for the sake of brevity, it is thought unnecessary to describe the same in further detail herein. It should be noted, however, that the pusher element 5, the rotor 6, the closing fingers 8, and the pasting mechanism, not shown, are all driven in a definite timed relationship in the manner described in the above noted patents.

The rotor 6 includes a rotary drum 3| mounted fast on the shaft 1, a hub 32 keyed or otherwise rigidly secured to the shaft 1 in axially Spaced relationship to the drum 3|, and plate-like side wall forming members 33, of which there are four in number, projecting radially outwardly from the hub 32 and mounted thereon for lateral swinging movements about the axes of pivot pins or trunnions 34. As shown in Fig. 3, the shaft 1 at its opposite ends is mounted in anti-friction bearings 35 and 36, the former of which is anchored in a mounting member 31 at one side of the frame I and the latter of which is mounted in an elongated mounting sleeve 38 rigidly secured in the opposite side of the frame I. The drum 3| is formed to provide an axially outwardly projecting peripheral flange 39 at the outer edge portion of which are formed the gear teeth 22 whereby the same is driven. The drum 3| also provides an inner side face 46 on which is mounted a plurality, as shown four, of brackets or the like 4| each of which define a side wall 42 of each of the bag-receiving compartments of the rotor 6. Compartment rear wall elements 43 are adjustably rigidly secured one each to one of the brackets 4| and are relatively fixed with respect to the brackets 4| and the drum 3|. As shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 6, the side wall forming members 33 are in opposed relationship to the wall portions 42 and are each yieldingly urged in a direction away from the wall portions 42 by coil springs 44 each having one end secured to the r hub 32, their other ends being anchored to the side wall members 33. Each of the side wall forming members 33 is provided with a cam follower roller 45 which engages a stationary cam 46 that is rigidly mounted on the shaft mounting sleeve 38 and which imparts swinging movements to the members 33 in directions toward and away from their respective side wall forming brackets 4| upon rotation of the rotor 6 as will hereinafter be more fully described.

A plurality, as shown four, of bushings 41 are rigidly mounted in the drum 3| and provide bearings each for a different shaft 48 which is integrally formed at one end with a head 49. By reference'to Fig. 3, it will be seen that the shafts 48 extend in spaced parallel relationship to the rotor mounting shaft 1. Brackets 50 are rigidly secured one each to each of the heads 49 with the shaft 48 and have rigidly mounted in their extended portions a compartment wall element 5|. Each of the wall elements 5| are in opposed relationship to a respective wall element 43 during certain stages of a period of rotation of the rotor 6% will hereinafter appear. Each head 49 is provided with an axially outwardly opening recess 52 in which is mounted for rotary movements a stem 53 provided with a pinion 54 which is contained within the recess. The pinion 54 has meshing engagement with a rack 55 slidably mounted in the head 49 and which at its lower end is provided with a bracket member 56 that in turn carries a tray-like member 51 which forms the compartment bottom wall. Each of the stems 53 is provided with a handle member 58 by means of which the stem and pinion may be rotated to adjustably move the bottom wall 51 with respect to the wall elements 43 and 5| to accommodate taller or shorter bags. The stems 53 are each held against accidental rotary movements by a pawl and ratchet arrangement, shown best in Fig. 9. Ratchets 59 are mounted on each stem 53 and are provided with ratchet teeth 60 which are engaged by end portions of pawl elements 6| which are mounted for limited swinging movement each on a pair of spaced pins or studs 62 and 63 anchored in each head 49. Each stud 63 is provided at its outer end with a head between which and the underlying pawl element 6| is interposed a coil compression spring 64 which biases the pawl in the direction of its cooperating ratchet 68. The springs 64 are of sufficient strength to hold the pawls 6| in locking engagement with the teeth of their respective ratchets 59 against being rotated by the normal weight of filled bags upon the compartment bottom walls 41 and the pressure of sealing mechanism exerted against the bags 3. However, the pawls 6| will yield readily to adjustment rotation exerted manually upon the adjustment handles 56. A collar 65 is pinned or otherwise secured to the inner end portion of the stem 53 and engages the adjacent side of the rack 55 to prevent axial outward movement of the stem 53 from the recesses 5'2 and corresponding outward movement of the ratchet 59 away from engagement with the pawl 6|.

Anchored to the end of each of the shafts 48 opposite the recesses 52 therein axially outwardly of one end of the bushings 41 is one end of each of a plurality of crank arms 66. The crank arms 66 each terminate in a head 61 which is bored to receive said end of its cooperating shaft 48 and is keyed thereto, as indicated at 68. A cam element in the nature of an arcuate band 69 is secured to each head 61 by means of screws or the like 16 and is provided with a cam track 1| which receives a cooperating cam element in the nature of 'a follower stud or the like 12. Each cam follower 12 is rigidly mounted in a lug or ear 13 which projects outwardly from the peripheral edge portion of a disc-like anchoring plate 14, each of said plates 14 being mounted on an axially projected end portion of each bushing 41 and rigidly secured to its cooperating bushing by machine screws or the like 15. By reference to Fig. 3, it will be seen that the anchoring plate 14 acts in the manner of a clamping flange to firmly hold its associated bushing 41 in place on the drum 3|. It will further be noted. by reference to Figs. 7 and 8, that the peripheral portion of the'head 61 of each of the crank arms 66 is machined or grooved, as indicated at 16, in a manner to receive the cam follower stud 12 in all positions of its relative movement in the cam track 1|. From the above, it should be obvious that rotary movement of each of the shafts 48 causes a relative movement between the cam elements 69 and their cooperating relatively stationary cam elenients'12 in a direction to'ca'use axial shitting of the shafts 48 and the bottom wall' 51and front wall elements 51 with respect to the drum 3|. This axial or lateral movement of the said bottom wall and front wall elements permits the bags 3 to be fed into the compartments in laterally outwardly spaced relation to the side wall por tionsiflofeach bracket 41 when said bottom wall and front wall-elements are positioned at one limit of lateral movement, after which the bags will be :carried into engagement of one side of each thereof with one .of the side wall forming members 42 by-cam actuated lateral movement of theshafts 48 toward their other limit of axial movement.

.Each of the crank elements 66 has journalled toits outer end acam follower roller 11 which is positioned to .ride in land he guided by a cam track :18 formed in a stationary cam 19 that is rigidly secured to the mounting member 47 by means of a key or the like 80 and a clamping ring .81l. through the mounting member 31 and have-screw threaded engagement with the clamping ring8l to lock the stationary cam i9 against lateral movements. With reference toFigs. .1, '2, and7, it will be seen that the cam 19 is provided with alnotch -83 which extends inwardly from the peripheral portion thereof and intersects the cam track 11821] which portion the track on one side of the notch is offset with respect to the track in the opposite side thereof. A member 84 lies against the outer surface of the stationary cam '19 andwis provided with an elongated slot 85 through which extends a clamping screw 86 screw threaded into the cam 19 and locking said member 84 in a desired set position. The member 84 is provided with a laterally inwardly projectingshelfor the like 8-1 which defines the bottom of an abrupt step formed thereby and the cam track 1-8. The slot 85 permits adjustment of the member 84 in a manner to increase or decrease the amount of offset relationship as desired. Mounted for swinging movements about an axis parallel-to the axis of rotation of the rotor 6 and as indicated at 88 is a detent in the nature of a bell crank 89 one leg of which disposed in the notch 83 and provided with a cam acting protuberance 9B. The bell crank 89 is urged to move the protuberance 99 thereof toward the bottom of the notch 83 by a coil spring 9! fastened at one end to the-bell crank 89, as indicated at 92, and at its other end to an anchoring bracket 93 screwed or otherwise secured to the stationary cam 19. Movement of the bell crank 89 in the direction of the steps! is limited by engagement of the bell crank with the adjacent side wall of the notch 83 and in the opposite direction by engagement of the end thereof with a finger 94 integrally formed with the bracket 93. Movement of anyone 'ofthe cam follower rollers 11 in the cam track 18 wi11 cause engagement of the roller withtheprotuberance 90 and move the bell crank BS'ag-ainst bias of the spring 9| outwardly with respect to the notch 83. As the cam follower H continues to move responsive to rotation of the rotor 6, it will be forced down against the step B'Iwith a snap action immediately upon release from the cam track 18 due to the bias of the spring M. This snap action results in a very short but rapid rotary and axial movement of the shaft 48 and parts carried thereby including the bottom compartment wall 5'! and the wall element 5| whereby to shake or jog the bag 3 supported thereby and the contents therein. In other words, the impact-of the cam follower 11 against the-shelf-like bottom 81 of the step is Machine screws or the like 82 extend transferred to the bag 3 through the bottom wall 51 and the front wall element 51. Striking the bag in this .manner causes granular ,materialtheld therein .to assume a predetermined leveled con! dition in which the level thereof slopesupwardly at a very slight angle toward the front wall element 5|, see Fig. 5. This arrangement is a feature of the invention which permits the bag closing fingers :8 to effect a highly eflicientclosing of the bag so that the material is tightly packed therein.

It will be noted by reference to Figs-3, 4, :and'5 that when the several elements comprising the bag holdingcompartments are in bagsupporting relationship that the front and rear wall elements .5! and 43 respectively converge :toward the openend of the bag as do the side wall formin members 33 and AZ. This arrangement of the several wall forming members squares the upper end portion of the bag without danger of damage to the bag walls, so that when the :bag .is closed, the :upper end thereof will be substantially rectangular in form .and present .a pleasing appearance.

Operation When it is desired to uti ize the machine herein described to close and seal bags filled to a predeterminedlevel, the motor 13 isenergized to :setin motion the conveyors 2 and [2, 1. rotate the rotor 6, and to render operative the bag closing and sealing mechanism including the fingers 8 and pasting mechanism, not shown, and the bag pushing member 5. During rotation of the rotor 8 in the'direction indicated by arrows in iFigs.'2, 5, and 6, each compartmentof the rotor moves continuously through severa1 stations indicated by A, B, C, and D in Fig. 5. As a given compartment approaches the station A, itscam follower TI is moved in the cam track to a position which permitsa filled bag 3 to be moved onto its bottom wall 5'! by the pushing member'5 in an upright condition. In this position of the bottom wall 5! and front wall element 5 l, relative movement 'between the cam elements 69 and 12 have caused said bottom wall and front wall element :to be moved laterally outwardly from the side 40 of the drum 3|, sothat the bag 3 is moved on to the bottom wall 57 in laterally spaced relationship -to the side wall 42 of the bracket Al associated therewith. The peculiar course of the cam track causes the bag 3 to be held in an upright position until with its compartment it has reached the station indicated by B, or until the bag closing fingers 8 have performed the initial bagclosing function upon the bag 3. During movement .of the bag from the station A to the station B, the side wall portion 42 moves circumferentially up? wardly toward full registration with the adjacent side of the bag. Upon reaching this point, relative movement between the elements 6-9 and 12 causes the bag to be carried bodily intoengagement of the side wal1 portion 4-2 with the adjacent side of the bag. Simultaneously, the oppo site side wall member 33 is moved laterally in the direction of the opposite side of the bag by the action of the cam 46 on the associated cam follower 45 so that opposite sides of the bagare firmly gripped between the side wall member 33 and the cooperating member 42. The rear wall element 3 meanwhile has moved into squaring contact withthe rear wall of the bag so that the front and rear walls of the bag are squared at their upper portions between the front and rear wall elements. At this time, the cam follower 7 11 has reached the notch 83 in the stationary cam 19 and is snapped downwardly against the stepforming shelf 81, as hereinbefore described, thus causing the bag 3 to be jogged or shaken sufficiently to cause granular material held therein to pile up slightly toward the front wall of the bag. The fingers 8 then engage the open upper end portion of the bag to partially close the same, paste having been applied to a portion thereof by mechanism not shown, and in a manner fully disclosed in the prior patents above identified. A further pasting operation is then performed by other pasting mechanism, not shown but described in said prior patents, and the folding and sealing operation completed by the closing and sealing elements and II, the bags being completely closed and sealed when the same has reached the position C.

Movement of the bag 3 to the position indicated by D permits the same to move downwardly from its compartment under the action of gravity and on to the discharge conveyor 12 whereby it is transferred to a suitable location remote from the machine for shipment, storage, or the like. When the sealed bag 3 has reached the station D, the side wall member 33 moves laterally out of engagement therewith and the front wall element 5| swings circumferentially in the direction of travel of the rotor 6 thereby permitting the bag 3 to be moved by the conveyor l2 in a direction to the right with respect to Fig. 5 for disposal. The bags 3 are delivered to the discharge conveyor [2 in an inverted condition so that the weight of the material within the bags. will cause the same to be maintained in a sealed condition until the paste has had sufficient time to set properly.

From the above, it should be noted that I have provided efficient mechanism for accomplishing the objectives set forth; and while I have shown and described a commercial embodiment of my novel mechanism, it will be understood that the same is capable of modification without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a plurality of circumferentially spaced compartments therein, each compartment comprising a bottom wall, opposed side walls, and front and rear wall elements, and adapted to receive a bag to be sealed, means for delivering filled bags to said compartments in laterally spaced relation to one of the side walls thereof, means mounting the bottom wall and one of said wall elements of said compartments for movements transversely of the path of travel thereof, means for imparting movements to said bottom wall and said one of the wall elements of each compartment whereby to carry the bags transversely into engagement of one side thereof with one of said side walls and to cause the bags to be clamped between said wall elements, mechanism for imparting movements to the other of said side walls toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of their respective bags, means for folding the upper ends of the bags into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering the closed and sealed bags away from said rotor.

2. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a plurality of circumferentially spaced compartments therein, each compartment comprising a bottom wall, opposed side walls, and front and rear walls, and adapted to receive a bag to be sealed, means for-delivering filled bags to said compartments in laterally spaced relation to the side walls thereof, means mounting the front and bottom walls of said compartments for movements transversely of the pathof travel thereof, means for imparting movements to said bottom walls whereby to carry the bags transversely into engagement of one side thereof with one of said side walls and to cause the bags to be'clamped between the front and rear walls, mechanism for imparting movements to the other of said side walls toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of their respective bags, means for folding the upper ends of the bags into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering closed and sealed bags away from said rotor.

3. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a plurality of circumferentially spaced compartments therein, each compartment comprising a relatively fixed rear wall, a relatively fixed side wall, a relatively movable side wall, and relatively movable front and bottom walls, said compartments each being adapted to receive a. bag to be sealed, means for successively delivering filled bags to each of said compartments in laterally spaced relation tothe relatively fixed side wall thereof, means mounting the front and bottom walls of said compartments for movements transversely of the path of travel thereof, means for imparting movements to said front and bottom walls whereby to carry the bags transversely into engagement of said relatively fixed side walls with a side of each of said bags and to cause the bags to be clamped between the front and rear walls, mechanism for imparting movements to said movable side walls toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of their respective bags, means for folding the upper ends of the bags into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering closed and sealed bags away from said rotor.

4. The structure defined in claim 3 in which said means for imparting movements to the front and bottom walls comprises cam-operated mechanism mounted on said rotor and responsive to movement thereof to simultaneously cause said bags to be moved into engagement with said fixed side walls and be gripped between the front and rear walls during a predetermined extent of rotary movement of said rotor, and to release said bag during a subsequent extent of movement of the rotor.

5. The structure defined in claim 3 in which the bottom and front walls of each compartment are mounted for common movements, and in further combination with adjustment means for moving the front wall of each compartment with respect to the bottom thereof.

6. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a compartment therein comprising a bottom wall, opposed side walls, and front and rear wall elements, and adapted to receive a bag to be sealed, means for delivering a filled bag to said compartment in laterally spaced relation to one of the side walls thereof, means mounting the bottom wall and one of said wall elements for compound rotary movements on an axis parallel to the axis of the rotor and reciprocatory movements transversely of the path of travel of said compartment, means for imparting said compound rotary and transverse movements to said bottom wall and said wall element whereby to carry the bag transversely into engagement of one of its sides with a side wall of the compartment and to cause the bag to be clamped between said wall elements, said last mentioned means comprising cooperating cam elements on said rotor, a stationary cam mounted adjacent said rotor and a connection between one of said cam elements and the stationary cam, said one of said cam elements being connected to said bottom wall and cooperating wall element for common movements therewith, rotation of said rotor causing relative rotary movements to be imparted to said one of the cam elements, relative movement between said cam elements causing said transverse movement to be imparted to said one thereof, mechanism for imparting movements to the other side wall toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of the bag, means for folding the upper end of the bag into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering the closed and sealed bag away from said rotor.

7. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a compartment therein comprising a bottom wall, opposed side walls, and front and rear wall elements, and adapted to receive a bag to be sealed, means for delivering filled bags successively to said compartment, means mounting the bottom wall and one of said wall elements for movements transversely of the path of travel thereof, means for imparting movements to said bottom wall and said one of said wall elements whereby to carry the bag transversely into engagement of one side thereof with one of said side walls and to cause the bags to be clamped between said wall elements, mechanism for imparting movements to the other of said side walls toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of the bag, mechanism for jogging the means for imparting movement to the bottom wall and said one of the wall elements when the bag is held in said compartment to shake the contents of the bag to a predetermined leveled condition, said last mentioned mechanism including a detent, means for folding the upper end of the bag into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering the closed and sealed bag away from said rotor.

8. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a compartment therein comprising a relatively fixed rear wall, a relatively fixed side wall, a relatively movable side wall, and relatively movable front and bottom walls, said compartment being adapted to receive a bag to be sealed, means for successively delivering filled bags to said compartment in laterally spaced relation to the relatively fixed side wall thereof, means mounting the front and bottom walls for movements transversely of the path of travel thereof, means responsive to rotation of said rotor for imparting movements to the front and bottom walls to carry the bag transversely into engagement of one side thereof with said relatively fixed side of the compartment, said last mentioned means including cooperating cam elements on said rotor, a stationary cam adjacent said rotor and a connection between one of said cam elements and said stationary cam, said one of said elements being coupled to said bottom and front wall mounting means for common movements therewith, rotation of said rotor causing rotary movements to be imparted to said one of the cam elements, relative movement between said cam elements causing said transverse movement to be imparted to said one thereof, mechanism for imparting movements to the other side wall toward engagement thereof with the opposite side of the bag, means for folding the upper end of the bag into 10 closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering the closed and sealed bag away from said rotor.

9. The structure defined in claim 6 in further combination with means for jogging the means for imparting movements to said one of the cam elements whereby to shake the contents of the bag to predetermined leveled condition, the jogging means comprising an offset portion in said stationary cam defining an abrupt step, and yielding means urging said connection toward the bottom of said step, the impact of said connection with the bottom of the step being transferred through said one of the wall elements and mechanism associated therewith to said bag.

10. In a bag closing and sealing machine, a rotor having a compartment therein comprising a bottom wall, opposed side walls, and front and rear wall elements, and adapted toreceive a bag to be sealed, means for delivering a filled bag to said compartment in laterally spaced relation to one of the side walls thereof, means mounting the bottom wall and one of said wall elements for compound rotary movements on the axis parallel to the axis of the rotor and reciprocatory movements transversely of the path of travel of said compartment, means for imparting said compound rotary and transverse movements to said bottom wall and said one of said wall elements whereby to carry the bag transversely into engagement of one of its sides with a side wall of the compartment and to cause the bag to be clamped between said wall elements, mechanism for moving the other of said side walls into engagement with the other side of said bag, a pair of cooperating cam elements on said rotor, a stationary cam mounted adjacent the rotor and defining a cam track, a cam follower mounted on one of said cam elements and engaging the cam track for imparting limited rotary movements of said one of the cam elements upon movement of said rotor, said one of the cam elements bein connected to the bottom wall and cooperating wall element for common movements therewith, an offset portion in said cam track defining an abrupt step, yielding means urging said cam follower toward the bottom of said step, the impact of said follower with the bottom of said step being transferred through the compartment bottom wall and associated wall element to the bag to shake the contents of the bag to a predetermined leveled condition, means for folding the upper end of the bag into closing engagement, and conveyor mechanism for delivering the closed and sealed bag away from said rotor.

11. The structure defined in claim 9 in which the height of said step is adjustable whereby to vary the amount of movement of the follower in the direction of said ofiset portion with a corresponding variation in the amount of bag-shaking movement of said compartment element.

HAROLD V. KINDSETH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 724,230 Wyman Mar. 31, 1903 1,781,714 Anderson Nov. 18, 1930 1,868,686 Belcher July 26, 1932 1,989,471 Belcher Jan. 29, 1935 

